Download World War II in World History - Department of History

Spring 2017
Prof. Jochen Hellbeck
[email protected]
Office Hours: T 3:30-5:00, Van Dyck Hall 217A
TA: Paul Mercandetti
[email protected]
Office Hours: T/TH 5:00-5:45, Van Dyck Hall 013
History 506:102 – Word War II in World History
T/Th 6:10-7:30 Campbell Hall A3
World War II was the most violent, lethal, and consequential conflict in human history. It
was a total war that mobilized states and societies across the globe, permeating all aspects
of life. It was an ideological war, fought not only for the control of territory, people, and
resources, but for the realization of distinct visions about human nature and social order.
World War II purposely and disproportionally targeted civilian lives: it killed upward of
50 million people, devastated cities from Hamburg to Warsaw, Stalingrad, and Tokyo,
and turned wide parts of the Eurasian continent into wastelands. The war and its
aftermath rewrote the global political landscape, bringing down Europe’s colonial
empires, producing new nations, and a new world order. As the bloodiest event in world
history, the war is palpable throughout the world to the present day.
This course seeks to understand this huge event as a whole. Relying on a broad array of
sources, which include political manifestos and military doctrines; literary accounts,
photo collections and diaries; cartoons and film, the course will explore political,
military, economic, social, and cultural dimensions of WW II. How was WW II
prefigured by the Great War of 1914-1918, the world’s first total war? How did different
political regimes mobilize for the conduct of war, and how did their efforts resonate on
the social and individual levels? To what extent did individual participation in the war
result from persuasion and active compliance, and how much of it was a matter of
coercion (often the two seemed to be inextricably mixed)? How did the experiences of
soldiers and civilians, men and women, compare across wartime societies? What choices
did people have (did they have choices at all?) as they enacted or suffered violence? How
should historians engage memories of the war, whether stories of victimization or claims
about the “best years of our lives”?
For a fuller statement of the learning goals pursued in this class, see the relevant History
department statement: http://history.rutgers.edu/undergraduate/learning-goals
Students’ grades will be determined as follows:
-- Regular attendance and participation in class: 15%
-- Blog postings: 20%
-- Short paper (800-1000 words): 15%
-- Midterm exam: 20%
-- Final exam: 30%
Failure to complete any assignment will result in failure for the course
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For your paper assignments, please follow the History Department Guide on writing
historical essays: http://history.rutgers.edu/undergraduate/learning-goals/writing-historical-essays
For the course to “work,” i.e., to be a rewarding individual and collective learning
experience, students are expected to attend all classes. If you expect to miss one or two
classes please use the University absence reporting website https://sims.rutgers.edu/ssra/
to indicate the date and reason for your absence. An email is automatically sent to me.
Please note: If you miss more than two classes without a valid and documented reason
your absence will affect your grade.
You are responsible for familiarizing yourself with the History Department's policy on
Mutual Responsibilities and Classroom Etiquette:
http://history.rutgers.edu/undergraduate/academic-policies/52-academics/undergraduateprogram/108-policy-on-mutual-responsibilities-and-classroom-etiquette
Cell phone use during class times is forbidden. All cellphones must be switched off and
be stored away from your desk. Wireless capabilities of computers and pads must be
turned off. I reserve the right to impose penalties in case of violations.
I encourage all of you to see me during office hours to discuss your assignments or other
aspects of your work for this class.
Reading Assignments
History 506:102 requires a good deal of interesting reading. The textbook that we will be
using is available at the Rutgers University Bookstore:
Michael J. Lyons, World War II: A Short History, 5th edition (Prentice Hall, 2009).
All other readings on this list are available on our Sakai course site where they can be
founded under «Resources / Readings». The titles there correspond to those listed on the
syllabus. Download them to your own computer and print them out. Please always bring
paper copies of the required readings for a given day to class.
Schedule of Classes and Readings
Note: the readings listed under a given day are DUE THAT DAY!
CHRONOLOGY I
January 17: Introduction
January 19: The Great War (1914-1918) and the Reshaping of the World
Reading: Lyons, 1-22
January 24: Left/Right Militarism Resurgent: Soviet Socialism and Italian Fascism
Reading: Ostrovsky, How the Steel was Tempered, Mussolini on the State; Lyons,
Chapter 3
January 26: Hitler’s Rise to Power
Reading: Lyons: 47-56; Hitler's speech at opening of House of German Art
(1937)
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January 31: Japan’s Imperial Mission
Reading: Lyons, 23-24, 42-47. Shigenobu, lllusions of the White Race; The
Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere
February 2: Madrid, Munich, Moscow, 1936-1939
Reading: Lyons: 51-63; La Pasionaria’s Farewell Address; “Documents on
Munich”
February 7: The Partition of Poland
Reading: Lyons, 63-70 and 115-123; Klukowski, Diary; Guderian, Rethinking
Armored Warfare
February 9: France Falls, England Fights
Lyons: 76-94, Sources on France; Churchill, “Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat”
February 14: Pearl Harbor and the War in the Pacific
Lyons, Chapter 12 and 142-145, 160-161 (skim the rest of Chapters 13 and 14);
Dower, Patterns of a Race War
Short paper due on February 15
February 16: Blood and Soil: Germany’s War in the East
Reading: Lyons, Chapter 10; Decrees on the War in the East
February 21: The Great Patriotic War
Reading: Molotov, Speech of June 22, 1941; Grossman, Diary
February 23: Turning Point at Stalingrad
Reading: Lyons, Chapter 16; Stalin’s Order No. 227; www.facingstalingrad.com
(study at least one Russian and one German interview)
THEMES
February 28/March 2:
War Economies in Comparison
Reading: Students will divide into six groups, reporting on different parts of Liz
Collingham, The Taste of War. Group 1: Germany (2 chapters); Group 2: Great
Britain (2 chapters); Group 3: Soviet Union (2 chapters); Group 4: United States
(2 chapters); Group 5: Japan (3 chapters); Group 6: China (1 chapter)
Lyons, Chapter 21: sections on the economy
March 7/9:
Home Fronts: Gender and Race in the War Effort
Reading: Rose, Sex, Citizenship, and the Nation in World War II; Koppes and
Black, Blacks, Loyalty, and Motion Picture Propaganda during World War II;
http://rosietheriveter.umw.edu/katie-jones-interview/; Solis Thomas Interview;
Sherwood, Colonies, Colonials, and WW II; Malakhova, Four Years as a
Frontline Physician; Goebbels, Sports Palace speech; Earhart, Warrior Wives;
Lyons, chapter 21: sections on the home front
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March 9: Distribution of Midterm Exam, due back March 24
March 14/16: Spring break
March 21/23 The Face of the Enemy
Screening and Discussion of “Know Your Enemy – Japan” (Frank Capra, 1943)
Reading: Dower, Know Your Enemy (March 21), and War Hates and War Crimes
(March 23)
March 28/30 Propaganda, Morale, Culture and the Arts
Reading: Miller, The Measurement of National Morale (August 1941); Roosevelt,
“Four Freedoms” Speech; Kracauer, The Conquest of Europe on the Screen;
Ehrenburg, The Justification of Hate; Earhart, A People United in Serving the
Nation
April 4/6
Nazi and Japanese Occupation. Annihilation, Resistance, Collaboration
Reading: Occupation: France; Occupation: Poland; Occupation: Soviet Union;
Occupation: China; reprise Lyons, Chapter 11
CHRONOLOGY II
April 11:
Uncovering Mass Graves: Liberation Campaigns in the East (1943-1944):
Reading: Tolstoy, Brown Madness
April 13:
D-Day to Berlin 1945
Reading: De Gaulle, Liberation Speech; Roberts, What Soldiers Do (Ch. 2);
Lyons, chapters 22 and 23
April 18: Japan’s Defeat
Reading: Lyons, Chapter 25; “Internal US debates about the use of Atomic
Bombs, 1945”; Shoko, A Labor Service Corps Girl’s Diary
April 20: Justice and Revenge. The Postwar Trials
Reading: Opening speeches by the US and Soviet prosecutors, Jackson and
Rudenko; Lyons: 295-303
April 25: From World War to Cold War. Decolonization
Reading: Churchill and Stalin speeches, 1946; Indian Independence source
April 27:
The War’s Shadows in Today’s World
Reading: Assmann, Europe’s Divided Memory
April 27: Distribution of Final Exam, due back May 4
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